Haslett has serious concerns about DBs

this is a discussion within the Saints Community Forum; http://www.sportingnews.com/voices/d.../20011023.html
Breaking them down with the 3
Norman Hand and La\'Roi Glover of the Saints are defensive tackles like Abbott and Costello were comedians. Partners in the same routine with different roles.
Hand is a nose tackle. He usually is ...

Norman Hand and La\'Roi Glover of the Saints are defensive tackles like Abbott and Costello were comedians. Partners in the same routine with different roles.

Hand is a nose tackle. He usually is shaded to the inside shoulder of the center and takes on a lot of double-team blocks from the center and guard. He\'s a stout wide body who is expected to stand his ground.

Glover plays the \"3 technique,\" the in-vogue term for the tackle who lines up on the outside shoulder of either guard. He is a one-gap lineman responsible for the hole between the guard and tackle.

The 3 technique tackle usually is lighter and quicker and more of a playmaker. \"You want your 3 technique guy to get upfield, cause havoc in the backfield and hopefully put pressure on the passer,\" says Rams defensive line coach Bill Kollar.

More and more teams are successfully implementing a player in that role. In addition to the Saints, the revitalized Rams defense is using a 3 technique tackle; Brian Young and rookie Damione Lewis have been sharing that position so far this season. Among the other 3-technique tackles are the Buccaneers\' Warren Sapp, the Broncos\' Trevor Pryce, the Seahawks\' John Randle, the Jets\' Shane Burton and the Packers\' Santana Dotson.

Keith Millard, who played for the Vikings from 1985-91 (and later with the Seahawks, Packers and Eagles), might have been the prototype 3 technique tackle. A first-round pick out of Washington State, Millard was a part-time defensive end as a rookie in 1985 in the Vikings\' 3-4 defense.

The next season, Floyd Peters became the new defensive coordinator and the Vikings switched to a 4-3 alignment. Peters moved Millard inside to tackle.

\"He thought that because of my initial quickness I\'d serve better in there,\" recalls Millard. \"He explained it to me that it was almost like playing a defensive end position but you\'re inside. You lined up on a shoulder and basically took off on the snap of the ball.\"

But Millard never heard the term \"3 technique\" until recent years. When he played, the Vikings simply called the position -- and still do -- the under tackle.

Millard, who had a team-high 11 sacks playing as a part-time end as a rookie, led the Vikings with 10 1/2 sacks in his first season as a tackle. In \'89, he erupted for 18 -- a mark that still stands as the unofficial NFL record for most sacks by a tackle.

Tackles who play the 3 technique usually are considered pass-rushing threats. Last season, Glover (17) and Sapp (16 1/2) ranked 1-2 in the NFL in sacks, and Pryce (12) was tied for ninth.

Millard was like the driver of a dragster waiting for the green light. As soon as the ball was snapped, he shot the gap. When he watches 3 technique tackles today, he sees a different game.

\"I\'m seeing a lot more gap control as far as getting their hands on the guards,\" Millard says. \"They\'re engaging and controlling before they penetrate, whereas I slipped past the guards and penetrated immediately.\"

The 3 technique tackle and nose tackle often flip-flop sides during games, depending on the offense\'s alignment. The middle linebacker makes that call. If he waits too long, it can lead to trouble. For example, there have been instances when the two tackles have run into each other while trying to trade sides. \"It looks pretty bad,\" Kollar says.

\"I\'m seeing a lot more gap control as far as getting their hands on the guards,\" Millard says. \"They\'re engaging and controlling before they penetrate, whereas I slipped past the guards and penetrated immediately.\"

It\'s that side gap control that determines the action of the backers and can influence intermeiate zone coverages. On a blitz , the reaction of the \"3\" determines the gap a LB becomes responsibile for, chipping of the tackle on a combo block, determines LB blitz gap, etc. It becomes much more involved that the NT choice of A or B gap control.

My point was that if Sullivan has never played in the 3-tech spot it would delay his grasp of his role a bit and may account for his lack of apparent performance.

Sullivan has played in the 3-tech spot before (more than the nose tackle spot in Georgia). But in the off-season he has practiced solely as a NT, so he had to switch back when they moved him on his second day.
Haslett at the draft said that he would start at nose tackle and he got ready for it. THAT was the time when he should\'ve said \"I don\'t know.\"
Anyway, it\'s his fault he\'s underperforming. Apparently he was surprised at how quick everything goes in a pro league and couldn\'t quite keep up. Holding out is not something I like to see, holding out as a rookie is even worse and when you come in after the contract is signed and look like you should have started training camp a week before everyone else did you just look stupid. He will be a good DT for us, but in the first few games he won\'t play up to his potential.

I know this is a reach but does anyone else get the feeling Haslett is setting Venturi up as the fall guy for the defensive collapse . Earning himself a brief side stepping of the axe when Benson comes looking for a head at the end of the season ???

That\'s the impression that I got when they didn\'t immediately got rid of Venturi after last season. So that Haslett could fire him if the defense once again was one of the worst units in the NFL. He could take over as defensive coordinator and get somewhat of a fresh start in 2004.
However, I don\'t think he wasted draft picks on purpose to make the defense worse and kill the team. A team that missed the play-offs by one game and arguably only needs a few good players on defense to be a real contender - when that happens he won\'t have to worry about his job. Do you believe Haslett enjoys losing? After all, it\'s not like he\'s the only one who makes this decisions.
I still like what they did on draft day, by the way. Let\'s wait and see how Bailey, Trufant or Woolfolk turn out. Defensive tackle was the biggest need because it had the biggest ifs written all over it. Does Grady get his weight down? Norman was already on his way out of town, Kenny Smith surprised at camp and Martin Chase - we\'ll see if he is a legitimate starter. They had 1/2 starter at the position and we all remember how painful it was when mediocre rushing team ran all over us. They had to move up this high to get him because none of the teams 7-12 were going to trade with the Saints. A bargain? Certainly not, but also not a total waste.
The one other defensive tackle from this year\'s class I will be watching closely is William Joseph. I think he would have been there at No. 17 and I was pretty high on him as well.